What happened to Buddha will not happen to Periyar!

There are theories and historical texts that point to the conversion of Buddhist signs and symbols into brahminical signs and symbols. The mythological story that links a white elephant with the birth of Gautama Buddha in later stages was used a symbol of Buddha by Buddhist monks who led a nomadic life to propagate the Buddhist principles and they installed those statues under Bodhi trees and mountain caves. 

Buddhism that does not acknowledge the existence of supreme god or deity focuses on achieving enlightenment instead. The Dravidian people who were used to idol worship started worshipping these symbols installed by Buddhist monks. People were attracted to the Buddhist principles which employ a radical approach in pointing out that they can overcome their sorrows by changes to their lifestyle and actions, instead of branding one’s sufferings as the consequence of one’s deeds in previous births. 

There are arguments that the Buddhist symbol - elephant under the Bodhi tree or on the shores of a riverbank was later used to create Vinayakar, a Hindu god in an attempt to rob its popularity and slowly convert Buddha as a harmless icon to their own ideology.

A week back, there was a picture circulated in social media by right wing extremists which depicted Periyar as a pig carrying urine bag in its hand - a futile attempt to mock him and his ideology. As a personality who was open to criticism and who takes ridicule and mockery head on, this would have been welcomed by him had he been here. The response to the same would have been at his satirical best. 

Who knows, they might continue on this path to convert Periyar into customised versions of the boar avatar “Varaha”. But, what happened to Buddha will never happen to Periyar!

His preachings to the general public were uncompromisingly forthright and were formed on the basis of rationalism, empiricism and at the same time were in simple terms. He stood against brahminical supremacy, caste hierarchies, racial inequality, gender inequality and acknowledged economic disparities in his criticism. So, they can never rob his revolutionary theory of its substance and make it their own. He can never be converted into a harmless icon - he will stand tall as a symbol against any form of oppression.

Even if they manage to achieve it, theirs would be the first group to celebrate an atheist as a godly figure. 

Even after his death, his principles are being received with most savage malice and most furious hatred from the right wing; he continues to stand tall no matter how many stones they pelt at him. Remembering our Periyar on his death anniversary!!

Why were women enslaved? (பெண் ஏன் அடிமையானாள்?)

Periyar’s “Why were women enslaved?” is a insightful perspective into the unfair and unequal treatment women receive in our society. Periyar lists down the aspects and ideologies that curtail the freedom of women and in turn lead to a woman’s life always being dependent on the male counterpart.

 

The word "கற்பு" (Karpu) in Tamil has been used to attach a purity tag to a woman in terms of virginity and chastity. The same tag doesn’t apply to a man and is free to have any number of extramarital affairs. Periyar voices out for gender equality in this context with arguments that break down how Indian society has used this purity to ensure women remain as slaves to the chauvinistic males. 

Periyar talks about financial independence for women in this book. To bring this to action, he had promoted the campaign for amendment of legal acts to grant women the right to inherit ancestral property which was confined to male heirs at that point of time. This would ensure a woman’s freedom from the clutches of the household and her dependence on her husband. 

The book also emphasises on divorce, remarriage and widow remarriage to counter the enslavement of women that stems out of the institution of marriage and its moral obligations. There had been practices in Hindu religion to confine widows inside the houses and forcefully suppress their desires and feelings - in fact there have been castes who go to the extent of shaving a widow’s head for the rest of their life. This would occur no matter how old is the widow, considering child marriages were abundant during that time. The stats and figures outlined in this book about the number of widows in 1920s (some were 1 year-old babies) are shocking and present to us the pitiful state of our society 100 years back. 

Periyar puts forth his view on legalisation of prostitution and recognising sex workers with dignity instead of showing contempt towards them and branding them as immoral. He draws parallel between prostitution and other professions which involve dishonesty but considered with high regard. His blunt and honest approach towards injustice that women suffer at the hands of men and the society they live in is what makes this an impactful read. 

The fallacious inveterate beliefs that confine women are dealt with uncompromisingly forthright counter arguments, no matter which religion or ideology preaches them. The book gives a fitting end by stating the enslavement of women can end only when unnecessary pride in the masculinity of the opposite gender withers away or gets abolished.

There are some extreme views put forth in this book, which are debatable, but one cannot ignore  or brush aside the facts emphasized here. Periyar's ideology on women empowerment needs to be spread to the masses. 

Remember that these thoughts were put together in words 100 years back during a time when they would have been received with the most savage malice.

There is a reason why Periyar can never be converted into a harmless icon - his simplified writings and the undeniable truth in them have the power to reach the masses and enlighten them for a better future.

I read this book in Tamil, but wanted to write about it in English so that it reaches readers outside TN as well.